AmericaJR.com [ TECHNOLOGY: Social media creates new challenges for entertainment attorneys, panelists say ]

Social media creates new challenges for entertainment attorneys, panelists say

by Jason Rzucidlo

americajr@americajr.com

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and MySpace are posing new problems for the music and movie businesses. Specific concerns include protecting against copyright and trademark infringement, licensing copyrighted and trademarked work, online advertising and merchandising involving trademarks and copyrights. It was one of the breakout sessions in the trademark track at the 2012 USC Gould School of Law Intellectual Property Institute. It was held on Thursday inside the beautiful Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Panelists on this topic included ABC's Charles J. Steinberg, MySpace's Zachary P. St. Martin and Latham & Watkins LLP's Perry J. Viscounty.

Viscounty is a partner of Latham & Watkins LLP and chair of the firm's global Intellectual Property Litigation Group. He also served as moderator of the discussion.

"You can't pick up the newspaper without hearing about social media," Viscounty said. "It's international. It creates all sorts of legal issues. Is there a financial interest? The first one is breach of contract. A lot of people breach the terms of use. The laws are developing to fit this new technology. Stop and think before you send a cease and desist letter. Let's get on the phone with the client. Think before you fire."

St. Martin is the vice president of business and legal affairs at MySpace LLC. He discussed the role of celebrities who use Twitter for advertising and the impact on the music industry.

"Businesses can buy promoted tweets," St. Martin explained. "Facebook has massive advertising. They get a large percentage of revenue from games, particularly Zynga. Lots of sites will provide you free access, then prompt you to pay. You have to worry if an ad has lifted a trademark. Endorsements without telling the consumer is a problem."

He also said that up and coming bands can use MySpace as a way to get their music out to new listeners.

"MySpace is the only place with on-demand streaming rights," St. Martin added. "You can post updates on your Facebook page. Provide free content for data. Utilize live streams to broadcast live events. Direct conversations with fans on Twitter is easy to do. Kickstarter is great to arrange private events. Social media is challenging the traditional music industry. Adele had no idea if she would make it. Her friend posted some tracks online and three or four days later, she had a recording contract."

Steinberg is the vice president of intellectual property and media legal in the legal division at ABC, Inc. He discussed how television studios are letting their fans handle some of their marketing duties for them.

"You want people talking about your project," Steinberg said. "It channels the power of buzz. You're giving up a certain amount of control. The same network that gets you message out can easily go astray. User-generated content (UGC) is stuff your audience makes. You could invite your audience to make a trailer. Instead of getting it into theaters, get it on YouTube. There's a blurring between marketing and entertainment. If we're running a contest for the Disney Channel, we'll give them the materials and the tools. We've done contests around our soaps."

He also pointed out that internet users have created account names after trademarked movies and television shows.

"Has anyone noticed the internet is a confusion machine?" Steinberg asked. "How people identify themselves with URLs and account names. We're dependent on the kindness of strangers. There's an expense to trademark registration. We're in and out of the market before an application gets granted. On the copyright side, the material comes down right away. On the trademark side, a human being has to look at it."

Keynote speaker Hon. Randall R. Rader highlighted the differences between the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals

Rader is the chief judge at the United States Federal Circuit Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C. He said the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals are similar in some ways, but yet very different in other ways. Both courts need to learn from each other, Rader said.

"Many of you sense a tension between the two courts," he said. "There's the closest of relationships. We seem to have divergent cultures. The federal circuit has never been closer. We need to show you that we're trying to work together. The Supreme Court are the most magnificent institution in the world. There has to be a balancing test. In most circumstances, you can predict the outcome of that test."

Rader added: "I'm dealing with commercial law. My culture is different. Our law gets into deep technical subjects. We both need to learn from the other. The federal circuit needs to take counsel from the Supreme Court. We need to acknowledge the need for flexibility."

The chief judge has made speeches in several different countries around the world. He said he understands why American students are having trouble finding jobs because foreign students can speak more languages and a higher percentage of them have Ph.D's.

"The market is international already," Rader explained. "You're all worried about jobs. The law schools are worried about placing students. The employment market is international. The last place in the world I expected to have a federal circuit was Moscow."

The next USC Gould School of Law Continuing Education event will be the 2012 Institute on Entertainment Law & Business. It will take place on October 27 on the USC University Park Campus in Los Angeles. It is being sponsored by the Beverly Hills Bar Association.

For more information on the USC Gould School of Law's Continuing Education Events, visit lawweb.usc.edu/why/academics/cle.

PHOTO BY JASON RZUCIDLO / ©AMERICAJR.com

Copyright and trademark infringement is among the biggest concern among entertainment attorneys.

"Adele had no idea if she would make it, " St. Martin said. "Her friend posted some tracks online and three or four days later, she had a recording contract."

Steinberg added: "Virtual games have been critical in the growth of social media."

"A lot of people breach the terms of use," Viscounty said. "The laws are developing to fit this new technology."

More celebrities are tweeting to monetize and promote products on the internet.

PREVIOUS PAGE

::: PAGE ONE :::

NEXT PAGE


:: DETROIT, MICHIGAN USA << >> LIVE STOCK TICKER :: MESSAGE BOARDS ::